Jiří Bartoška (1947–2025), one of the most influential figures in Czech cinema and longtime president of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, has died at the age of 78.

Bartoška’s death marks the end of an era for Czech film. As the face of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF) for nearly three decades, he helped elevate the event into a globally respected celebration of cinema. His presence, charisma, and love for the arts shaped Czech cultural life like few others.

In recent years, he had battled a series of serious health issues. In 2014, he was diagnosed with lymph node cancer, which he managed to overcome. However, the disease returned in 2023, requiring another round of treatment.

He also suffered a bout of appendicitis in 2020, which forced him to leave the filming of A Wish for Santa Claus and undergo emergency surgery. This year, he is believed to have contracted COVID-19 while attending the Czech Lion Awards.

Despite these challenges, Bartoška remained deeply active, regularly appearing at public events and continuing his organizational role at KVIFF. In interviews, he often spoke candidly about his illness:

“It was a completely new situation for me. I’ve never really been ill before. Cancer is serious, but it’s no mystery. The more you dwell on it, the worse it gets. If you ignore it, maybe it gets offended and leaves,” he told Blesk at the time.

Even during chemotherapy, he attended award ceremonies and continued to oversee the festival, refusing to let the illness define him.

Bartoška was known for his lifelong smoking habit, which he eventually replaced with e-cigarettes. “I told myself I’d quit. I’ve smoked enough in my life,” he said in late 2020, marking a rare concession to health concerns.

From Accidental Actor to National Icon

Born on March 24, 1947, in Děčín, Bartoška did not initially plan to pursue acting. After being rejected from art history studies, he worked as an art instructor in Pardubice. On the advice of friends, he applied to the Janáček Academy of Performing Arts (JAMU) in Brno, where he studied alongside future stars like Dagmar Havlová, Bolek Polívka, and Karel Heřmánek.

His early stage career took him from the Husa na provázku Theatre in Brno to the Drama Studio in Ústí nad Labem in 1973. Eventually, he settled in Prague, performing at the Municipal Theatre and then at the legendary Na zábradlí Theatre until the early 1990s.

His stage roles ranged from Hamlet’s King, Ivan in The Brothers Karamazov, to Macbeth, Don Juan, and several guest performances at the National Theatre.

While theatre was his first love, Bartoška gained widespread fame through film. He made his screen debut at 28 and quickly became a household name thanks to his role as the hunter Sokol in the prehistoric film trilogy The Ravens’ Stronghold, On the Big River, and The Call of the Family.

His portrayal of violinist Matěj Minač in All My Loved Ones won him the Czech Lion award. Other standout roles include Cemetery of Foreigners and the acclaimed drama Tiger Theory.